Gwreck

=Marshmallowmilkshake post_id=114396 time=1670596304 user_id=119] Would Ottovino be too expensive at this point?

=bmfc1 post_id=114136 time=1670378792 user_id=73] As good as it would be to see the NYY fanbase go out of its mind the Mets are better off with Judge in the AL.

Holding his ground as he tagged out Juan Soto on one of the funnier bad-baserunning plays of the year.

=Marshmallowmilkshake post_id=113938 time=1670264395 user_id=119] How does a vesting option work?

As amazing as the 2018 season was, his absolute dominance in 2021 was like nothing I've ever seen. He had more hits (as a batter) than earned runs allowed.

I suppose having a hitting specialist as a bench coach is a way to (somewhat) double-up on hitting coaches.

Max Scherzer finished 5th in WAR for NL pitchers. Got no votes.

Obviously adding Trea Turner makes the Mets a better team and whether he plays second or third or DH is really only a minor concern. I certainly don't know if he'd want that role but if it's a matter of money, Steve's got plenty to spend. I assume the easiest move is to re-sign Nimmo but if that's not going to happen/Brandon wants to leave, then I don't really know what to expect. We don't really have enough information to know where Cohen's budget will be. Personally, if I had Steve's money, I'd probably say “what budget?” and had try to sign both. And then add Judge too, as per smg58's plan above.

https://baseballhall.org/discover/contemporary-era-player-ballot-2023https://baseballhall.org/discover/contemporary-era-player-ballot-2023 Eight former big league players comprise the Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot to be reviewed and voted upon Dec. 4 at the Baseball Winter Meetings. Albert Belle, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly, Fred McGriff, Dale Murphy, Rafael Palmeiro and Curt Schilling are the candidates the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee will consider for Hall of Fame election for the Class of 2023. All candidates are living. Any candidate who receives votes on 75 percent of the ballots cast by the 16-member Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee will earn election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and will be inducted in Cooperstown on July 23, 2023, along with any electees who emerge from the 2023 Baseball Writers' Association of America election, to be announced on Jan. 24, 2023. The Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee is one of three groups eligible for consideration as part of the Era Committee process, which provides an avenue for Hall of Fame consideration to managers, umpires and executives, as well as players retired for more than 15 seasons. The Contemporary Baseball Era features two distinct ballots: One for players (considered this fall) and one for managers, executives and umpires (considered in the fall of 2023). Following the restructuring of the Era Committee process in the spring of 2022, the two Contemporary Baseball Era ballots were instituted, along with the Classic Baseball Era, which includes all candidates whose primary contribution to the game came prior to 1980. The Classic Baseball Era Committee will meet for the first time in the fall of 2024. There are some very big names here who the writers failed to elect…but how did Don Mattingly and Fred McGriff wind up here? Or, more particularly, how could either one of those guys be considered ahead of Keith Hernandez? (Or, for that matter, Mark McGwire).

The Cohens sent this out to season/partial season plan holders this morning. In one sense, it's just PR, but it came across to me as well done: We thoroughly enjoyed spending the 2022 season cheering on the Mets with you. While we are all disappointed with the Playoff result, there is still much to be proud of. This year will go down as a historic season for the New York Mets. We made it back to the postseason for the first time in six years and won 101 games, the second-highest total in Mets history. It was our first 100-win season in 34 years. After two COVID-impacted years, it was our pleasure to fully welcome you back to Flushing this season. We are fortunate and so grateful to have the the most passionate, loyal fanbase in the game. You are the foundation of your home-field advantage. Our players consistently tell us how much they love playing in front of you at Citi Field. Since the ballpark opened in 2009, no Mets team has won more games at home than this year's group did. We also made significant progress supporting communities in need through our Amazin' Mets Foundation. Since its incorporation in January 2021, the Foundation has distributed over $4 million in grants to those organizations that serve our communities. In 2021, the Amazin' Mets Foundation was able to touch the lives of 258,187 individuals through funding aimed at supporting organizations in the areas of baseball/athletics, community/neighbors, health and wellness, and youth and education. Throughout this past 2022 season, the Foundation has provided over $2.4 million in funding to organizations who work tirelessly to uplift our communities. Two years ago, we asked you how we could improve the Mets fan experience. Thanks to your feedback, we were able to celebrate several iconic Mets moments this season. It was our honor to shine a light on our ballclub's rich history. This year alone, we unveiled the Tom Seaver Statue, hosted Citi Field's first-ever Old Timers' Day and retired uniform numbers in honor of Keith Hernandez and Willie Mays. Our goal of creating a world-class experience for Mets fans at Citi Field is just getting started and we will continue to show appreciation to you members through our membership platform. We are committed to continuing the progress we made in 2022. We have the utmost confidence in Billy's vision for this club and Buck's leadership and ability to manage the game. This offseason, we are laser focused on sustained excellence. LGM 2023! Sincerely, Steve & Alex Cohen

DiComo reported it is after the 2025 season.

The flip side. Keith Law, writing for The Athletic, is down on the Diaz deal. I read Keith earlier. The entire premise of his article rests on the idea that each player has a value above which a deal is "bad". This may be the case for the Pirates. It may even be the case for top spenders with limits like the Rangers. But the analysis completely falls apart if your view of the underlying economics of the Mets is different: Steve Cohen has more money than most owners and doesn't mind throwing it around. The cost to the Mets in prospect capital, draft capital, and other talent is zero. The cost in "Cohen Bucks" is irrelevant. The other key consideration to me is that the Mets don't have internal alternatives. Rebuilding a farm/player development system doesn't happen overnight. In 5 years, the farm might be developing great in-house relief options but it isn't right now, and retaining Diaz costs nothing but money. If this Diaz deal somehow prevents the Mets from signing Nimmo, or deGrom, or Alonso to an extension, or whatever…then it might be a problem. But do we really think that's the case?

Two-pitch starting pitchers aren't a great bet for success. Lucchesi should be no higher than 7 on the depth chart going into the season. I'd certainly give Walker a QO and consider a longer term deal.

It's Pat Hoberg. He also had a game earlier this year where he missed only 1 pitch, and was rated as one the very best all year. Good to see performance rewarded with the WS assignment.

Ordinarily, I want to be pleased that the Yankees were eliminated but Ted Cruz was there right behind the plate cheering for the Astros which complicates things.

I haven't seen anything linking Cohen to indiscriminate manager firings, calling players by derogatory names, publicly-decried meddling with organizational operations, or public complaints about the team's win-loss record. That's what comes to mind first about a “Steinbrenneresque” owner. Now, if by “Steinbrenneresque” you meant “willing to spend lots of money in the FA market,” I too have that impression of Cohen. Keeping this on topic: it wouldn't shock me if Cohen wants to offer the big bucks, and I see little downside. There can hardly be any dispute that he would massively improve the team in the short term. As for the long term, we have only a limited view, but things go sour, we did see with Cano that ownership understands a sunk cost.

=Ceetar post_id=111674 time=1666304621 user_id=102]the big splash showy acquisition that Cohen seemingly loves.

Part of that might be solved by stacking the matchups, so that you start with 1v4, 2v5, 3v6, and finish with 1v2, 3v4, 5v6, hoping that at least one (and maybe 2) of those series become(s) irrelevant. But as noted, there's no guarantee that there wouldn't be teams with mismatched motivations.

The math is more complicated than I can do in my head but I would expect there are many scenarios in which some games in the final series (or two) wind up being cancelled as moot. That might be ok, since it ratchets up the attention on those deciding games. BUT: you also could very well have games in a final series between a team that's out of it and a team that needs to win to advance. That seems much less compelling than the existing structure.

Intriguing! I would go a step further: higher seed plays at home, always. You get #1 seed, you don't travel. #2 seed gets 4 home series; #3 gets 3, etc. #6 seed is on the road the whole time. Biggest obstacle is TV. Does having 6 “playoff” games happening on a given day increase profits enough?

=Ceetar post_id=111465 time=1666039207 user_id=102]Steve Cohen's net worth has increased more than 10x that just this year. I'm not sure he can afford it.

Sure, there's some residual bad taste after the Atlanta game. And deGrom was only “good” not “utterly dominant” against San Diego. But (1) is there another pitcher in the majors you'd rather have starting a playoff game? And (1a) is there any other free agent starting pitcher who could plausibly be an answer to #1? I'd open with a bid of…$135M for 3 years with an opt-out after 2.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: My point is if he wants Scherzer money, you have to let him go. I doubt that he'd opt out unless he's looking for a significant upgrade, and I don't think he should get one. Why don't you think he should get an upgrade in salary? (And do you mean in general, or from the Mets specifically?)

The Hot Corner wrote: Just like virtually every other player that hits the open market, money talks. I expect he is looking for a huge increase in his annual salary and he will almost assuredly sign with the highest bidder. If that happens to be the Mets, I'm sure he will be happy, but I don't expect him to give them a discount to stay with the organization. Agree. I fully expect the Mets to equal (or top) the best offer deGrom gets. And if he wants to go elsewhere, well, that'll be his choice. But I see no circumstance in which the Mets are outbid.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I think MLB had proposed that the division champs be provided with a 'ghost win', meaning that the Braves would have only had to win one game to take the series but the Phillies would have needed two. But the union rejected the idea. It was the other way around. The players wanted that. It was something considered when MLB was pushing a 14-team playoff structure.